9_9 Yeah, that old catch-22. Every shop wants trained workers, they just want OTHER people to do the training.
OK this is going to be a bit of an essay, keep reading.
I think your nephew needs a slightly different approach. First of all he needs to not give a $hit if people look at him a little funny sometimes. He needs to change his "sales pitch" a little.
I wish someone had told me this when *I* first started out.
He needs to start just knocking on doors of welding-related companies. If he thinks there's welding going on he should knock. Doesn't matter whether or not they say they're hiring, he shouldn't even ask about that until later.
He should explain his situation a little. Tell them he just got out of welding school, but he doesn't know a lot about the business of welding. He should say things like "I want to know more about welding as a career. what kind of equipment your company uses, and what welding precesses your company uses. What do your customers mainly ask you for?" Once he's chatted with someone other than the receptionist, he should then ask if it would be OK if someone showed him around the shop. He should say he really wants to learn more about welding and about what that company does.
He should make a point after he'd been shown around for a few minutes, to ask if he can try to do a little bit of welding. "Hey, I've done a lot of MIG welding in my classes. do you mind if I take a shot at that? I've got my helmet, gloves, and my jacket in my trunk." Or else he should ask if the manager will let him do a weld test, if he doesn't think the former would go over well.
Believe me, a lot of managers will appreciate his initiative for being forward at a time like this, it gives them an opportunity to show off their own knowledge.
This is a little psychological trick. Most managers hate feeling like you want to lay more responsibilities on them, like you want them to solve your problems( I.e. you're broke and unemployed and discouraged).......but they LOVE showing off their companies and their own expertise. Especially if they think they have your undivided attention, and really give a $hit about what they're telling you. Everyone loves an eager audience. (including ME.)
If offering to "try it" goes well for him, if the manager seems satisfied with his weld quality THEN is the time for your nephew to ask if they'd be willing to hire someone like him. Remember that most managers will waffle and turn him down at this point, then mumble something noncommital. (for example verbatim "we usually hire people with one or three or five years....") The difference here is he's demonstrated a bit of trustworthiness, communication skills, and work ethic so he's already won half the battle.
Here's what he should do every time he;s turned down. Offer to work for FREE for a few days. Tell them to give him something easy so he can try it out. In other words, offer to get a little bit of side work done for them in exchange for FREE EDUCATION. (this costs them nothing, they pay no taxes, don't have to summon a bunch of forms, etc. and you get a little bit done. Perfectly legal.)
The major reason for the catch-22 is that usually when a company wants to hire someone it's because the shop has work coming out of it's ears. The shop manager just wants to get stuff out the door so he and his workers can go home. Having to train someone new would actually increase the workload because he'd have to pull one of his senior workers to supervise and double check his work the first few weeks, that's going to cause a slowdown. He wants someone who can show up the first day and get some job order finished.
The other concern that managers often have is, is a new, inexperienced person going to know enough to be safe? Or is he going to make some beginner's mistake and cause an accident? Am I going to have to dress him down for taking risks his second day? No manager who is worth his job title likes doing that. Fewer enjoy having to fire somebody.
Here are some more tips:
-He should ask about internship programs. (a bit hard to find in the case of welding, but it's worth a shot.) Internships are volunteer work in exchange for free training.
-He should look for jobs as a "welder's helper." Welder's helpers do things like grinding and clean-up stuff, holding things so the welder can tack weld them, punching holes, or measuring things. In turn it's assumed that the main welder will "teach him the ropes" and let him take over easy welds once he feels the guy can work safely and doesn't need to be told certain things.
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